Friday, May 19, 2017

January Thaw: Framed!

A former Framingham police officer who worked in the department’s evidence room was indicted Thursday by a Middlesex County Grand Jury on charges that he stole about $20,000 from the evidence room before resigning last year, according to Attorney General Maura Healey’s office.

Alan B. Dubeshter, 55, will be arraigned in Middlesex Superior Court at a later date, according to the attorney general’s office.

In September 2015, Dubeshter, who was a patrolman, was found with several Framingham Police Department evidence envelopes in his truck, law enforcement officials say. An investigation revealed that the envelopes had been tampered with, and were missing money.

Investigators also discovered that other envelopes maintained in the Framingham Police Department evidence room had also been tampered with in the same way.

Dubeshter resigned from the department in April of last year, and the attorney general’s office began an investigation after a referral from the Middlesex District Attorney’s Office. The Framingham Police Department assisted in the investigation.

In another recent incident involving the department’s evidence room, a “hide-a-key” that permitted unrecorded access to the room was discovered in October. The Middlesex District Attorney’s Office notified defendants about the discovery in November.

Two men were arrested for allegedly running a large-scale fentanyl distribution operation out of a Shriver family home in Hyannisport without the family’s knowledge, according to Barnstable police.

Troy Monteiro and Trevor Rose, both 29, former Cape Cod residents who now live in New Bedford, were charged with multiple drug offenses during their arraignment Thursday in Barnstable District Court, police said in a statement.

Ariel Price-Perry, 26, identified by police as Monteiro’s girlfriend who drove him from New Bedford to Hyannisport, was also charged with multiple offenses, including impeding a police investigation, police said.

The three were arrested Wednesday after a two-month surveillance by police of the home on Atlantic Avenue once owned by the late Eunice K. Shriver, founder of the Special Olympics and sister of the President John F. Kennedy.Oddly, JFK was on steroids and all sorts of stuff due to his tremendous physical pain -- which likely contributed to not only his legendary libido, but to his connection with ordinary people through the tolerance and management of pain.

The property now is owned by a New York-based trust managed by her son Robert Sargeant Shriver III, according to town property records.

Police said they seized more than 200 grams of fentanyl worth about $40,000 hidden on beaches near the home. Equipment to process the drugs, including scales, packaging materials, and diluting agents, was found inside the residence, police said in a statement.

The Globe was unable to reach a Shriver family representative for comment.

Monteiro and Rose were given access to the Shriver home by a caretaker, police said.

The caretaker, Kadi Kannally, 42, of Yarmouth, was arrested Thursday night on charges of conspiracy to violate the Controlled Substance Act, according to Barnstable Deputy Police Chief Sean Balcom. Kannally is being held on $20,000 bail and is scheduled to be arraigned on Friday, he said.

The Shrivers “have clearly been victimized by a caretaker,” Balcom wrote in an e-mail to the Globe.

“They had no idea what was going on there and were not present at any time during the investigation,” he said.

Many of the alleged transactions took place in the area of Fortes Beach in Hyannisport, police said in the statement.

Over the last two months, police made several undercover purchases, and were also able to identify areas on Squaw Island Beach that Monteiro and Rose allegedly used to hide the drugs, police said.

Monteiro was charged with two counts of trafficking fentanyl and conspiracy to violate the Controlled Substance Act, police said.

Price-Perry, who is accused of attempting to destroy evidence while Monteiro was being arrested, was also charged with violating the Controlled Substance Act.

Rose, who was arrested at the Shriver home when he arrived with the caretaker, was charged with one count of trafficking fentanyl and possession of cocaine, according to police....

The Survivors Network of those Abused by Priests, a leading voice in the campaign against clergy sexual abuse, is facing a wrongful-termination lawsuit from a former fund-raiser who says the group “accepts financial kickbacks” from lawyers who represent survivors they find through the organization.

The lawsuit against St. Louis-based SNAP, which provides counseling for victims of clerical sex abuse, says that fund-raiser Gretchen Rachel Hammond was terminated after she raised concerns about money the group received from lawyers representing SNAP members.

“Instead of recommending that survivors pursue what is in their best personal, emotional, and financial interest, SNAP pressures survivors to pursue costly and stressful litigation against the Catholic Church,” the lawsuit says.

Barbara Dorris, SNAP’s outreach director, said the allegation of a kickback scheme between the organization and attorneys who represent its members is untrue.The Firm?

Hammond’s lawsuit, filed in Chicago, SNAP’S former headquarters, comes at a time when David Clohessy, the organization’s longtime executive director, has resigned. Clohessy was often quoted in stories written by the Globe Spotlight Team when it was exposing the coverup of sexual abuse by Catholic priests.

But Mary Ellen Kruger, who chairs SNAP’s board of directors, said Clohessy informed the board in October that he was resigning effective Dec. 31, even though the group did not announce his departure until earlier this week. “It had absolutely nothing to do with the lawsuit,” she said.

Phil Saviano, a former SNAP board member and founder of the group’s New England Chapter, said the organization has no arrangement under which SNAP makes referrals to attorneys in return for donations.

“If there is a plan, it’s been poorly organized, because as long as I’ve been involved with them they’ve been hurting for money,” Saviano said.

The nonprofit group’s most recent disclosure to the IRS says it had just over $100,000 in net assets at the close of 2014. At the time, Clohessy was receiving a salary of $86,000, as was president Barbara Blaine.

Mitchell Garabedian, a Boston attorney who has represented clergy abuse survivors for two decades, said he was puzzled by the filing earlier this month because SNAP has relatively few assets.

“I have to wonder why this lawsuit was filed, given that SNAP would not have any funds to pay a judgment favorable to the plaintiff,” he said.

Garabedian acknowledged making donations to SNAP, but said his contributions are no different from the contributions he makes to other organizations that help survivors.

“Giving to charities is an integral part of representing victims of clergy sexual abuse,” he said. “Many victims are destitute and without food and shelter.”

The lawsuit says Hammond worked for SNAP from July 2011 until February 2013 and received a raise — to $66,000 from $60,000 — because of her performance. Subsequently, however, Hammond discovered the kickback scheme through access she had to Clohessy’s e-mail account and organization documents

The lawsuit says that, at the time SNAP was colluding with attorneys to raise funds, it “never reached out to, or communicated with, grief counselors or rape counselors for the purpose of providing counseling to survivors.”

At one point, the lawsuit says, SNAP “concocted a scheme” to conceal donations from attorneys by encouraging them to make donations to a “front foundation” called the Minnesota Center for Philanthropy, which in turn would make grants to SNAP.

The Globe could not find a charitable organization with that name but Hammond’s lawyer, Chicago attorney Bruce C. Howard, said it’s possible that plans to start the center never got off the ground. The existence of the alleged scheme, he said, is confirmed by documents retained by Hammond while working for SNAP.

The lawsuit says that after Hammond complained to SNAP officials about fund-raising with attorneys, SNAP officials retaliated, in part, by requiring her to make daily reports off her activities to Blaine. As a result, she suffered from stress that led to health problems, including high blood pressure and weight gain.

Howard, Hammond’s attorney, said she waited three years before suing because she initially wanted to put the matter behind her, but changed her mind after seeing the movie “Spotlight,” which chronicles the Globe’s investigation of clergy sex abuse.

“After moving on and seeing ‘Spotlight’ she decided that what was going on at SNAP was wrong and what happened to her was wrong and she decided to take action,” Howard said.I haven't seen it yet.

"Last week, the parent of Snapchat took heat for appearing to pay its only female director, Joanna Coles, far less than her male peers on the company’s board. Now Snap Inc., as the company is formally known, would like to correct the record...."Oh, I'm sorry, different SNAP -- although, when you come to think about it you are getting f***ed either way.

Into February:

All is fair in snow and war “This is the first time we got snow this winter.”Well, the art of deception is the first rule of war and it was not the first time we got snow last winter.

"Alleged serial bank robber, a former deputy, is held without bail" by Andy Rosen Globe Staff February 02, 2017

An alleged serial bank robber was ordered held without bail Thursday during his arraignment in Lawrence District Court on charges stemming from a string of heists from Boston to the shores of Lake Winnipesaukee.

Lawrence police arrested Chaka Meredith, a former North Carolina law enforcement officer, around 7 p.m. Wednesday during an investigation that involved FBI agents and police from other municipalities.

The FBI had offered a $5,000 reward for information leading to his capture. A spokeswoman said at least part of that amount would be paid out.

In a news release, police said they had been looking for Meredith and Kristi Riley, an associate, based on information suggesting they were in Lawrence’s lower Tower Hill area....Racism is the reason he couldn't get a job at the bank. That's the defense I would begin with.

"Father, daughter among six arrested in meth lab raid in Plymouth home" by John R. Ellement Globe Staff February 02, 2017

A Plymouth father and his 19-year-old daughter were among six people charged with operating a “sophisticated laboratory” for making methamphetamine following a police raid on their home Wednesday, officials said.

Richard Pearson, 41, and his daughter, Kiana, pleaded not guilty Plymouth District Court Thursday on charges of manufacturing an illegal drug, methamphetamine; possession of methamphetamine with intent to distribute; and conspiracy to violate drug laws, Plymouth police said.

Plymouth Police, with the support of specially trained agents from the US Drug Enforcement Administration's Clandestine Lab Unit, raided the Pearson residence at 55 Spooner St. Wednesday afternoon.

During the search, police allege they discovered a “sophisticated laboratory” used to manufacture methamphetamine, along with some of the drug and a separate batch of the drug packaged for sale, Plymouth Police Chief Michael E. Boteri said in a statement.

“This was pursuant to a lengthy investigation into manufacture and distribution of methamphetamine at that site,’’ Boteri said in the statement.

Police also allegedly found “pharmaceuticals” and psilocybin mushrooms, which are consumed for their hallucinogenic effect.

A third person who lives at the Pearson residence, identified by police as 18-year-old Brittany Navarro, faces the same charges filed against Pearson and his daughter. She pleaded not guilty and was ordered held on $2,500.

Three other people were also arrested and charged for their alleged roles in the lab, and all of them pleaded not guilty. David Hill, 20, of Wareham was ordered held on $10,000 bail, and a judge agreed to revoke bail on two other open cases.

Casey Hamilton, 38, of Ocala, Fla., was ordered held on $25,000 bail. Stephanie Dubis, 39, of Plymouth was ordered held on $10,000 bail.

Police said a seventh person arrested at the house did not have any connection to the illegal lab. That person faces a charge of possession of Class B drugs, and he was released on personal recognizance....Why no name?

"Israeli man charged in international drug network that reached into Boston" by Evan Allen Globe Staff February 16, 2017

Federal agents foiled a $2.5 million cocaine-trafficking plot and arrested a “known Israeli-based drug trafficker and money launderer” who was extradited Thursday from Poland to Boston, acting US Attorney William D. Weinreb announced Thursday.

“Today, we have made progress in the fight against international drug trafficking by charging a Middle Eastern national with conspiring to transport millions of dollars in cocaine from Colombia through Boston to the Middle East,” Weinreb said at an afternoon press conference at US District Court in Boston.

Jalal Altarabeen, 33, an Israeli national, was detained after his initial appearance in court Thursday afternoon. He is charged with one count of conspiring to possess with intent to distribute more than 5 kilograms of cocaine and six counts of international money laundering. He had not yet been arraigned or entered a plea.

A coconspirator, a Jordanian national whom authorities did not name, has been indicted, but Weinreb said the man was still at large.

According to court documents, an undercover federal agent first made contact with Altarabeen through the coconspirator in October 2015, when the coconspirator said a friend of his wanted to purchase “large quantities of cocaine.”

For the next five months, the coconspirator and Altarabeen conspired in Boston, Colombia, Poland, and elsewhere to distribute 50 kilograms of cocaine purchased from the agent, according to the documents and a statement from Weinreb’s office.

The price was set at $50,000 per kilogram, and the cocaine was set to be delivered in Israel, according to the statement. The undercover agent told Altarabeen and the coconspirator that the cocaine would be transported from Colombia to Boston, and then from Boston to Beersheba, Israel.

Altarabeen allegedly agreed to pay about $1 million up front and the remaining $1.5 when the cocaine arrived. He sent wire transfers from Turkey to a bank account in Boston, according to the court documents.

Altarabeen was arrested in Warsaw, after traveling to meet with the undercover agent and others, according to officials.

“This case exemplifies the importance of disrupting large-scale, international drug trafficking before the drugs can be distributed,” said Weinreb. “I cannot overstate how important it is that we interdict these large drug shipments, where and when we can.”

Altarabeen’s initial court appearance was brief, and his attorney declined to comment afterward.

Weinreb said that there were no allegations of violence against Altarabeen or his alleged coconspirator, though he noted that the international drug trade was a dangerous business.

Altarabeen had allegedly hoped to get the undercover agent to help him set up a front company in Israel for future operations.

Altarabeen is a “known Israeli-based drug trafficker and money launderer,” said Michael J. Ferguson, special agent in charge of the Drug Enforcement Administration New England Field Division.

The DEA, he said, prioritizes its resources by targeting the “world’s biggest and most powerful” drug traffickers.

The Framingham-based Internet security firm CyberX said it has spotted a new weapon in the ongoing cyberwar between Russia and Ukraine — a program called BugDrop that is being used to steal vast amounts of sensitive data from Ukrainian businesses and institutions.

“It looks very professional ... and most important, very successful,” said CyberX co-founder Nir Giller, a former engineer for the Israel Defence Forces cybersecurity unit.

Ukraine is already believed to be the target of a massive cyberwarfare campaign run by Russia, which annexed the Ukrainian territory of Crimea in 2014 and has been involved in a tense military standoff with Ukraine ever since.Except they didn't.You know, when a lie is repeated and repeated and repeated and repeated, is it any wonder I no longer believe my pre$$?

In 2015, an electrical outage cut power to 230,000 Ukrainian homes in what US authorities concluded was the world’s first successful hack of a nation’s electrical grid. A similar attack in late December 2016 cut power to a large part of the Ukrainian capital, Kiev.

In BugDrop, attackers are using booby-trapped Microsoft Word documents to get inside computer systems and copy vital data, according to CyberX. The infected machines record all keystrokes, take screenshots of the monitor, and even activate the computer’s microphone to record voices. All the data is encrypted and sent to a Dropbox account.Oh, if it's Microsoft it's in the Shadows!

Giller estimated that BugDrop has collected up to 3 gigabytes of data per day since it was launched, probably last year.

More than 70 organizations have been hit by BugDrop, including two Ukrainian newspapers, a company that makes oil and gas pipeline equipment, a company that designs water systems and electrical substations, and an international human rights organization.

CyberX researchers also found infected computers in Russia, Austria, and Saudi Arabia.

CyberX has not identified the perpetrators but noted that since BugDrop attackers would need ample resources, the attack could be state-sponsored. But they don’t know which state is behind it. Some of the targets are in regions of Ukraine dominated by pro-Russia separatists, leading Phil Neray, CyberX vice president of industrial cybersecurity, to question whether Moscow or Kiev is behind the BugDrop operation.I think I know.

A former Cambridge jeweler, who once counted Hollywood actors and a former president among his customers, was arrested Tuesday in Los Angeles nearly 10 years after fleeing to India after being accused of defauding banks out of millions of dollars.Turned the tables on them, did he?

Raman Handa, 67, a former Lexington resident and owner of the high-end Alpha Omega Jewelry chain, was taken into custody at Los Angeles International Airport after getting off a plane from India, according to the US Attorney’s Office in Boston.

Handa was charged with 12 counts of wire fraud in a 2011 indictment unsealed Wednesday in Boston, prosecutors said in a statement.

He is scheduled to appear Friday in US District Court in Los Angeles. His first court date in federal court in Boston is not yet known, the statement said.

Handa is accused of scheming to defraud his company’s former lenders, the statement said.

Alpha Omega Jewelers, which specialized in fine watches and jewelry, opened in Harvard Square in 1980. The business later opened stores at the Prudential Center in Boston, and at shopping malls in Burlington and Natick.

The small chain’s A-list of customers included former President Bill Clinton and Hollywood actors Ben Affleck and Eva Longoria.

But Handa, a fixture on Boston’s charitable and social scene, soon ran into financial troubles. In 2007, from May to December, the business could not keep up with payments on loans it had with several banks, prosecutors said.See: Flynn's Fraud

Handa is alleged to have developed a scheme to defraud lenders by fabricating inventory reports that were used by banks to determine a credit limit for his business. The reports included luxury watches and other items made by India-based vendors that Alpha Omega did not possess, the statement said.

Handa and his family abruptly left the US on Dec. 15, 2007. After Handa’s departure was discovered, Alpha Omega’s lender took control of the company, reviewed its inventory, and discovered more than $7 million in missing or unaccounted for inventory, according to the US Attorney.If it was fabricated inventory how can it be missing money? It never existed to begin with. What they are saying is he didn't pay back the loans, right? If he had, everything would be fine?

"A Connecticut man created a tense situation near TD Garden Wednesday night when he stopped his car on Causeway Street and then handed a note to a Boston police officer, claiming he was armed with a bomb. Boston police said the incident began around 11:30 p.m. when the officer, working a paid detail on Causeway Street, saw a car pull up to a set of lights, come to a stop and then remain at the traffic light through several cycles. “The officer approached the vehicle and observed the operator to be unresponsive’’ prompting the officer to reach through the driver’s side window and shut off the idling car. “The driver, a 22-year old male from Branford Conn., became alert and handed the officer a note which indicated that he had an explosive device on his person,’’ police wrote. The officer backed away, and police created a perimeter with yellow tape around the man and his car. After four hours of negotiations, the man stepped out of the car and was taken into custody by police. The man, whose name was not released, was taken to an area hospital for observation and treatment. He will be summonsed into Boston Municipal Court at a later date to face a charge of making a threat about “dangerous items,’’ police said. The department’s bomb squad detonated the man’s backpack as part of the investigation and no explosive device was found, police said." Another mind-manipulating, mind-f*** trigger to invoke imagery of, you know.

"For ski resorts in the region, this season so far can be summarized in two words. “Way better,” said Jessyca Keeler, executive director of trade association Ski NH, which represents 34 New Hampshire ski resorts. This time last year, the region’s ski industry was reeling from unusually mild temperatures and anemic snowfall — just midway through this season, and leading up to a holiday weekend and school vacation week, area resorts are predicting strong visitor numbers, thanks to a weather “sweet spot” — and, “It’s been pretty crazy snowing almost every day,” said spokesman Greg Kwasnik. “It’s been a dream come true.”I knew I hadn't imagined it.

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